Red Bull's new order: Daniel Ricciardo leaving Sebastian Vettel behind?

Daniel Ricciardo and Sebastian Vettel

They are the words Aussie Formula One fans would not have dreamt to hear from the Red Bull garage so early in the season. 

But is Daniel Ricciardo already challenging four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel's long-held supremacy at Christian Horner's team?


Ricciardo could move ahead of Vettel in the drivers standings if Red Bull wins its appeal. Photo: Getty

Ricciardo finished fourth on Monday morning, capping a superb Bahrain Grand Prix where the 24-year-old earned his first official points of the season.

For now, the West Australian remains 11 points behind his four-time World Champion teammate.

But that could all change, pending the outcome of the appeal into Ricciardo's fuel breach disqualification which robbed him of second at the Australian Grand Prix.

Should Red Bull win their argument with FIA, Ricciardo would move to 30 points, seven ahead of the German.

But regardless of the points tally, Ricciardo has already won a handful of encounters against Vettel that would not have gone unnoticed on the pit wall.

The first came on the opening tyre stint in Bahrain when Ricciardo was closing in on Vettel in a battle for eighth.

Ricciardo was heard on race radio on lap 16 telling his team: "We are going to have to do something about this [being caught behind Vettel], we need to decide what to do."

The team responded: "Sebastian can you let Ricciardo past, he is faster than you."

With about eight laps to go, Ricciardo again executed a brave move on Vettel, and then Force India's Nico Hulkenburg to finish two places ahead of his teammate.

He was just metres from a podium finish on Monday, with Force India's Sergio Perez clinging to third on rapidly fading tyres.

Third at Malaysia is Vettel's best finish so far.

That same weekend Ricciardo started brilliantly to move ahead of Vettel at the Sepang circuit only to have his race cruelled by an unsafe pit stop release and ultimately mechanical failure.

That incurred a 10-place grid penalty for the night race at Bahrain, meaning Ricciardo was relegated to start 13th on the grid despite his superb qualifying effort, where he again outpaced Vettel.

Ricciardo has so far outqualified Vettel in Melbourne and Bahrain and finished ahead of him in two of the three Grands Prix.

Team orders were a regular occurrence during Australian fellow Mark Webber's days at Red Bull, but they nearly always favoured Vettel.

Now Ricciardo's early-season prodding of Vettel has him – at the very least - treated as an equal.

The next race is Shanghai 's Chinese Grand Prix in a fortnight.


Ricciardo and Red Bull team boss Christian Horner. Photo: Getty

 

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